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Ajmer Rode
Ajmer Rode is a Canadian poet and prose author who writes in both Punjabi and English. Life Rode earned a B.E. at Punjab University. He came to Canada in 1966, and received an M.A.Sc. from the University of Waterloo in 1968. Rode is regarded as the founder of Punjabi theater in Canada. He wrote and directed the earliest Punjabi play in the country, Dooja Passa, dealing with racism faced by minorities. This was followed by his full-length play, Komagata Maru based on a significant racial incident in British Columbia's history. Though it lacked professional direction the play generated considerable publicity inspiring theatrical interests in the Indian-Canadian community. His most recent English play Rebirth Of Gandhi was produced at Surrey Arts Center in 2004 to a full house. Rode is member of an international team of translators rendering Sufi songs from Urdu, Punjabi and Hindi into English; the Los Angeles-based project aims to produce a large multilingual book of original and translated songs sung by late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, the legendary Sufi singer of the 20th century. An active member of The Writers' Union of Canada, Ajmer Rode was on its National Council in 1994 and later chaired its Racial Minority Writers Committee; Currently he is co-ordinator of Vancouver's Punjabi Writers Forum, the oldest and influential Punjabi writers association in Canada. He has been founding member of several other Indian-Canadian literary and performing arts associations including Watno Dur Art Foundation, and India Music Society founded to promote classical Indian music in North America. He was the first secretary of Samaanta, an organization to oppose violence against women and is now on the advisory board of Chetna, a Vancouver based organization promoting minority rights and opposing Casteism. He has served on Canada Council and British Columbia Arts Council juries to award literary grants. Writing His earliest work was non-fiction: Vishva Di Nuhar','' on Einstein's theory of relativity, in dialogue form inspired by Plato's ''Republic. Published by the Punjabi University in 1966, the book initiated a series of university publications on popular science and sociology. Rode's debut poetry collection, ''Surti,'' influenced by science and philosophical explorations, was experimental and in the words of critic Attar Singh 'has extended the scope of Punjabi language and given a new turn to Punjabi poetry'. His Līlha (or '''''Leela), an epic poem more than 1000 pages long co-authored with Navtej Bharati, is considered an important Punjabi literary work of the 20th century.Ajmer Rode, Writers Union of Canada]. Web, June 2, 2013. Among Rode's significant translation is The Last Flicker an English rendering of a modern Punjabi classic novel, Marhi Da Diva, by Gurdial Singh (who recently won the Gyan Peeth, India's highest literary award). The translation was published by the Indian Academy of Letters in 1993. Recognition Rode was given the Best Overseas Punjabi Author award by the Punjab Languages Dept, India in 1994. Guru Nanak Dev University honored him with the "Prominent Citizen (literature)" award and the G.N. Engg. College with the "Poet of Life" award the same year. In Canada he has been honored with awards for Punjabi theater and translation. Publications Poetry English *''Blue Meditations: Poems''. London, ON: Third Eye, 1985. *''Poems At My Doorstep. Vancouver, BC: Caitlin Press, 1990. Punjabi *''Surati: kavit-av-an. Canḍīgaṛha, India: Raghabīra Racanā Prakāshana, 1979 **''Surti". London, ON: Third Eye Publications, 1989.'' *''Līlha: Kawitāwan'' (with Navtej Bharati). Vancouver, BC: Rainbird Press, 1999. Fiction English *''The Last Flicker''. New Delhi, India: Sahitya Academy, 1993.Publications, Ajmer Rode. Web, June 2, 2013. *''Vishava Di Nuhar'' (science fiction). Patiala, India: Punjabi University, 1966. Plays English *''Komagata Maru''. London: Third Eye Publications, 1984. Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCatSearch results= au:Ajmer Rode, WorldCat, OCLC Online Computer Library Center Inc. Web, June 2, 2013. Translations To English *''The Last Flicker'' (novel). New Delhi: Sahitya Academy, 1993. *''Desire'' (poems). Ludhiana, India: Aesthetic Publications, 1999. To Punjabi *''One Hundred One Surrealist Poems''. Amritsar, India: Nanak Singh Pustakmala, 1996. *Lenore Keeshig-Tobias Bird Talk (children's story). London, ON: Third Eye Publications, 2001. Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy Ajmer RodeTranslations, Ajmer Rode. Web, June 2, 2013. Editing *''Punjabi Poetry of Canada,'' co-edited, 1980 *Canadian Punjabi issue of the Preet Lari, 1986 *''Munch Katha,'' co-edited, 2002 *''Om Parkash'', 2005 Drama Plays written and directed *Dooja Passa, One Girl One Dream, Visa, Komagata Maru, *Nirlajj, Chetna (co-author), Third Eye, Rebirth of Gandhi, *Turi Wala Kotha (direction), Stair to Nowhere (reading), *The Fragrant Grass (reading) See also *Asian-Canadian poets *List of Canadian poets References External links ;Audio / video *Ajmer Rode at YouTube ;Books *Ajmer Rode at Amazon.com ;About *Ajmer Rode Official website Category:Canadian poets Category:Canadian dramatists and playwrights Category:Indian emigrants to Canada Category:Canadian writers of Asian descent Category:Canadian people of Indian descent Category:Living people Category:Canadian poets of Asian descent Category:20th-century poets Category:English-language poets Category:Poets Category:World poetry